Wednesday, 15 February 2017

Cream Cheese Chicken and Vegetable Pie.

Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu!

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most MercifulYou guys are going to love this pie!

But before we talk all things pie, can I just tell you guys about my new favourite cereal? It's this cinnamon one and I can't believe that it's taken me this long to try it out. For a cinnamon roll freak like me, it's the best.

Anyway, this pie. It starts with a cream cheese white sauce. I use both milk and stock for extra flavour. And, I finish the thick sauce off with a few dollops of cream cheese. There's no actual cheese in the sauce and so the cream cheese does a really good job of making everything really luxurious and creamy. Next, the chicken vegetable filling which again is so easy to make. I start by softening onions, mushrooms, bell peppers and garlic together before I add in my cheat ingredient - mixed frozen vegetables! Yes, you could use fresh but these frozen ones have been frozen at the peak of their freshness plus they save us so much time. The filling is finished with cooked, shredded chicken breast and the white sauce. Stir and you will have one of the best pie fillings ever. Promise me you'll taste some with a spoon as you let it chill.Finally, a pie is nothing without its pastry. Here, I made my own buttermilk shortcrust pastry which is a lot easier than it sounds because I used a food processor to do all the hard work. This pie has a double crust which is pastry on both the top and bottom making the pie, once cold, perfectly portable. If the weather where you are is on the warmer side, the cold pie would be perfect for a picnic. If like me, it's still winter and pretty miserable out there, this pie, hot out of the oven, will be perfect for a cold night's dinner.Chicken Pie, previously: creamy winter pie // asparagus and chicken summer pie // hot water crust chicken pie // chicken plait with cheese pastryA Simple List of Ingredients:For the Cream Cheese White Sauce:1. Butter2. Plain Flour3. Chicken or Vegetable Stock4. Milk5. Cream or Soft Cheese6. Salt and PepperFor Chicken Vegetable Filling:

First, let's make a cream cheese white sauce in a large pan. This sauce is the best. It's on the thicker side which is just what we want for a pie filling.

Into the pan, place 85g Butter.

Let the butter fully melt.

Then, sprinkle in 60g Plain Flour.

Turn the heat up to medium and stir in the flour.

Cook for a few minutes until fragrant.

Once fragrant and bubbling, it's time to add the liquid.

The first liquid is 300ml Vegetable/Chicken Stock. I used my homemade vegetable stock but you can use 1 stock diluted in 300ml hot water.

Gradually add in the stock.

And, stir in until thick and well combined.

Next, more liquid in the form of milk.

Stir in 170ml Milk.

Once everything is well combined and bubbling, we can add in the cream cheese.

Dollop in 110g Cream Cheese. I used plain but a garlic herb version would be delicious too.

Season with Salt and Pepper, to taste.

And, stir until everything is melted and well combined. The sauce will be thicker than your average white sauce but that is just what we want.

Place the sauce into a bowl and set aside until needed. It will thicken even more as it cools.

Next, let's make the chicken vegetable filling. I used the same pan as before and heated up 1 tablespoon Butter and 1 tablespoon Vegetable Oil until melted.I used frozen mixed vegetables in this recipe but first, I softened up a few fresh ones.

To the melted butter, add 15 White Mushrooms, thinly sliced.

Stir-fry the mushrooms for a few minutes.

Next, throw in 1 Onion, peeled and thinly sliced.

And 1 Bell Pepper, diced.

Sprinkle in a little Salt and Pepper, to taste.

Stir-fry for a few minutes until everything was sizzling.

Then, cover with a lid and turn the heat to low. Cook for around 20 minutes until everything is soft.

Then, uncover and stir-fry for a few minutes over a medium heat.

Next, add in 4 Garlic Cloves, peeled and thinly sliced.

Stir-fry for a minute or two to cook out the garlic.

Next, add in 150g Frozen Mixed Vegetables. I used a mix of peas, sweetcorn, carrots and green beans. You can use fresh too but you may need to cook them a little longer.

Stir in the vegetables and let them soften a little.

Then, add in 1 Chicken Breast that has been cooked and shredded.I cooked my chicken by poaching it in water. Place the chicken breast in enough water to cover it. Bring to the boil.Then, cover with a lid and cook over a low heat until fully cooked.Then, shred up the chicken. So easy!

Add in Salt and Pepper, to taste.

Stir everything together until the vegetables are cooked.

Then, add in the cream cheese white sauce.

Stir in until well combined. Taste and adjust the seasoning, if needed.

Let the filling cool completely. It must be fully cold before being used in the pie. It will thicken up even more as it cools which is just what we want for our pie.

As the filling cools, we can make the buttermilk shortcrust pastry. You can also use ready-made pastry too but I promise you, this pastry is so much easier than it sounds. I used a food processor but you can easily make it by hand too.

To the processor, add 370g Plain Flour.

Add in Salt and Pepper, to taste.

Pulse until everything is well combined.

Next, take 230g Unsalted Butter, cold and cubed.

Add the cubed butter to the flour.

Pulse again until you have a crumb consistency.

Then, gradually add 130ml Buttermilk. You might not need all of it. To make my buttermilk, I mixed together 60ml Water with 70ml Yoghurt.

Pulse and add the buttermilk gradually just until you get clumps in the dough.

Like this! It's ready when you press the dough and it sticks together.

Then, tip the dough out onto a lightly floured surface.

Roughly roll the dough into a ball or log.

Slice the dough in half and pat them into round discs.

Wrap the discs in clingfilm.

Chill the pastry in the fridge for 30 minutes or the freezer for 10 minutes.

To bake the pie, pre-heat the oven to 200C. Grease a rectangle baking tray with a little oil. You may also line with baking paper too. Mine measured 34cm x 25cm.

Take one of the pastry discs and place onto a lightly floured surface. Let the dough come up to room temperature a little - this will make rolling a lot easier.

Roll the dough until thin and roughly the same size as your baking tray.

Place the pastry on to the tray. I like to fold it up and them move it onto the tray - makes moving the pastry a lot easier.

Unwrap the pastry.

Then, adjust and fit as needed. You can trim the excess and use it to patch up the pastry. As long as there are no holes, you're good.

Then, grab the cold filling.

And, place it all onto the filling. We like a thick filling in the pie but you may add less, if you prefer.

Spread the filling evenly over the pastry.

Then, roll the second disc of pastry for the top.

Fit the second pastry sheet onto the top. Trim any excess and use to patch up any holes. Crimp the edges with a fork to seal everything in.

Next, grab 1 beaten Egg.

Brush the pie all over with a beaten egg.

The beaten egg will give this pie a lovely golden colour.

If you want, make leaf decorations with the extra pastry and stick onto the pie. Brush them with beaten egg too.

Then, poke a few slits with a knife all over the pie. This will help the steam escape when baking.

Bake the pie at 200C for 45 minutes or until crispy and golden brown.

Like this!

Let the pie cool a little for 10 minutes and then, we can slice!

Look at that creamy filling with the crispy, buttery pastry!

This pie was so good! It was delicious both hot and cold. Everyone who tried it, loved it! Ps. There are more recipe notes after the written one!

Make the cream cheese white sauce:
Melt the butter in a large pan. Add in the flour and cook for a few minutes, stirring until fragrant, over a medium heat. Gradually add the stock, stirring as you go. Stir in the milk until well combined and bubbling. Finally, stir in the cream cheese, salt and pepper.

Once well combined and thick, the sauce is done. It will be on the thicker side. Scrape the sauce into a bowl and set aside until needed. It will thicken even more as it cools which is fine.

Make the chicken filling:
Melt the butter and vegetable oil together in a large pan over a medium heat. Add in the sliced mushrooms and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Add in the sliced onions, diced bell pepper and a little salt and pepper. Stir everything together for 2 minutes over a medium heat. Cover with a lid and turn the heat right down. Cook for 20 minutes until everything is soft and beginning to caramelise.

Uncover and stir-fry for a few minutes over a medium heat. Add in the sliced garlic and stir-fry for a minute or two. Add in the mixed frozen vegetables, cooked shredded chicken, salt and pepper. Stir together and cook until the vegetables are done.

Make the pie filling:
Add the cream cheese white sauce to the chicken filling and stir well. Remove from the heat and allow to cool completely. It will thicken up considerably as it cools but that's just what we want for our pie.

Make the buttermilk shortcrust pastry:
Pulse the plain flour, salt and pepper until combined in a food processor. Add in the cubed, cold butter and pulse until you get a crumb consistency. Add the buttermilk in stages, pulsing as you go, until you get clumps in the dough. You might not need all the buttermilk.

Tip the dough onto a clean surface and bring together into a ball. Cut the ball into two and pat them both into a round disc. Wrap each disc in clingfilm and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes or the freezer for 10 minutes.

Assemble the pie:
Remove the pastry from the fridge/freezer and let it come up to room temperature for a few minutes - this will make rolling much easier. Roughly roll one pastry disc on a lightly floured surface until thin and roughly the same size as the baking tray. Fit the pastry into the bottom of the tin.

Place the cold pie filling evenly onto the pastry on the tray. Roll the second pastry disc to the same size and place on top of the filling. Trim off any excess pastry and use it to patch up any holes. Tuck and seal the pastry in and crimp the edges with a fork to seal.

Brush the pie with the beaten egg. Use the excess pastry to make leaves, if you wish. Stick them onto the pie and brush again with beaten egg. Poke the pie all over a knife - this will let the steam escape when the pie is baking.

Bake and serve the pie:
Bake the pie at 200C for 45 minutes or until golden brown and crispy. Let the pie cool for 10 minutes then slice and serve!

Recipe Notes:

No chicken/vegetable stock for the white sauce? Dilute 1 stock cube into 300ml hot water and use that instead.

Any cream cheese will do in the white sauce. This time, I used a plain one but in the past, I've used a garlic and herb version which was delicious.

You can use mixed frozen vegetables or fresh ones. Fresh will take a little longer to cook. My frozen mix had carrots, green beans, sweetcorn and peas.

I cooked my chicken by poaching it. Place the chicken breast in enough water to cover. Bring to the boil then cover with a lid over a low heat. Cook until it's fully cooked - mine took around 30 minutes. Cool slightly then shred.

No food processor for the pastry? You can make it just as easily by hand.

This pie is so good to make in advance. You can even make the filling the day before and let it cool completely overnight. Same with the pastry - make, wrap and chill in the fridge overnight.

ASSALAMU ALAIKUM + WELCOME!

I'm Faatimah and welcome to This Muslim Girl Bakes. Here you'll find step-by-step photo recipes for both sweet and savoury halal dishes. I love putting my halal spin on many different world cuisines. On this blog, you'll find plenty of recipes for busy weeknights, slow weekends and everything in between. There's also plenty of traditional Pakistani food as that is what I was brought up on - the kind your mother used to make but you were always too scared to try.. Read more..

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Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu! In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful Today, it's about time that I fi...

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